A Flower Without Rain

Chapter 23

Arriving to the Crown Prince's chambers of the Vermillion Palace, Ru Mingyu entered. Once he was in the royal member's presence, he bowed. "Greetings, Your Highness." Looking to him, he saw that the expression he held was a shocked one. "Is there something wrong?"

Xin Hua didn't answer, but instead asked the guard of something. "Have there been any events other than Lady Yuan Li's kidnap?"

Ru Mingyu had to make a choice. Should he be honest or bury what he found during his mission?

"Actually," he approached the Crown Prince. "Before I am to tell you, I need to share what I found during my mission....... There were a few men who knew that a foreign prince would be arriving to our kingdom, turning out to be Prince Ren Huiliang. They then spoke of how we, the Xie Kingdom should be wary of their presence. As I nor anyone was unaware of this, I alerted my father."

Still, the Crown Prince kept silent and listened as he sat.

"Upon my return, I was told that we were being watched, followed and eventually Yuan Li's kidnap. At this, I began to wonder if this merely was a coincidence, but the next happenings only made me question if it truly was." he paused for a second. "During Lian Zhong's search for Yuan Li, he found that his men had been slaughtered with the only clue being, 'Him. He's coming.' Keeping mind of us being watched, Lian Zhong decided on a stakeout at the Lian Clinic, where it was first noticed. There, he was able to detain one of the men hiding within our shadows."

This was a lot of information and Xin Hua sat processing it all.

"The man spoke of how his master would free Yuan Li from this damned nation." The guard's gaze turned to the floor. "I'm not sure what is going on but I believe something we do not know, except for the king and the Clan Leaders, is coming."

It was quiet for a moment as Ru Mingyu waited for him to speak. Suddenly, Xin Hua outstretched his arm with a paper in hand. The guard's brow jerked as he took it to read and his eyes widened upon so.

"What does the owner of this note mean?!" Ru Mingyu asked in shock.

The Crown Prince shook his head, "I don't know but it's as you said. We must go to the king and the Clan Leaders to understand." the look in his eyes were fierce.

Rising from his seat, Xin Hua left to exit with Ru Mingyu following behind.

The beginning was upon them.

Meeting again in this quiet room, were the Clan Leaders by the order of King Xin Chao. They were becoming restless with each passing day knowing that their enemy was hidden and they were just sitting ducks.

"Maybe it is time we tell our sons!" Clan Leader Yuan Qi spoke, having brought along his son, Yuan Shan who stood outside with Lian Zhong as his father also did the same.

King Xin Chao was hesitant hearing his words. These secrets were shocking once you heard them as they seemed unreal. "Do you think they will understand?" he didn't want to act too soon.

However, before an agreement could be made Crown Prince Xin Hua along the heirs of the Three Great Noble Clans barged in. The secrets needed to stop.

"Tell us the truth!" Xin Hua shouted. "What is happening exactly?"

Although Lian Zhong was always one to remain upright concerning political matters, he couldn't this very moment. He had to know where his wife was.

The three Clan Leaders looked at one another in silence before turning to the king. As though they read each others' minds, a decision was made. "Please take a seat," he told the young men.